Wow, I really enjoyed this! It should be noted that this was written pre-9/11, when extremists were considered an annoying, but quirky, side of society, and not the "enemy to all man" as they became known thereafter. It was when it was still okay to listen to them to see what their beliefs were rather than scream at them with our fingers in our ears.

Ron Jonson does just that. With his faux-naif approach to interacting with people, he meets some of the world’s most intense extremists (I’ll mention who below), and tells their story and tries to see if they’re right (in some cases) by breaking into secret government meetings and rituals and going to neo-Nazi camps (as a jew!) and hanging out with Islamic fundamentalists.

It’s quite a wonderful journey of exploring the outer limits of society to see that most people are just scared. They’re afraid of manipulation by powerful people, afraid for the future of society (or their race); they’re afraid of alien invaders and secret cults and other weird shit that would probably send a chill down most of our spines (if we actually believe them to be true). That fear is not unreasonable, even if the way that fear is exhibit, using extremist methods, leads to further fear, divisions, death and hate. Yet, the only way to repair such negative impacts, or avoid them altogether, is by doing exactly what Ron Jonson does: sit down and talk with our “enemy.” Hear them out, if they’re willing to be heard.

Ron Jonson’s writing style is hilarious. His faux-naif approach to journalism is endearing, and I’m pretty sure the guy could walk straight into the queen’s palace using his open, calm, and non-judgemental approach to interacting with people. He uncovered the interesting paradigm that almost all his interviewees believed that there was a “them”: a secret society of powerful people (or lizards) in a secret room controlling the world. Among his adventures, he set off to find “them” and even succeeded.

Here are most of the people he covered and some of what I learned about them. As this was written 20 years ago, I’ll also include what happened to those people since this was published:
n  
* Omar Bakri Mohammed: launched an Islamic holy war on Britain (while trying to get British citizenship). Based on his behaviour, he has deep insecurities and likely has a mental illness. He would switch from manically happy to tyrannical, depending on with whom he was speaking. He was also a compulsive liar. However, he was also pleasant to be around, friendly, and wanted to be represented as a family man.
* In 2005, Bakri went on the run, with a permanent UK ban, after his group members became suicide bombers. He left for Lebanon but was arrested in 2014, after building an Islamist military training camp, and sentenced to hard labour in a Beirut prison.
* Randy Weaver: this was really heart-breaking. The separatist gun-loving Weaver family went to live in the mountains to get away from the “new world order.” His nearby drinking buddies were white supremacists (Aryan Nation), the ideologies of which Randy rejected but he liked them as people (questionable long-term choice there). He was blackmailed by the government (1992), and then arrested, when he didn’t show up for court, a US marshal team came and shot his dog, then his 14-year-old son, then his wife, killing them all, before sending in the military (Ruby Ridge standoff). Randy died earlier this year (May, 2022).
* Aryan Nation: are, in fact, a bunch of scary lunatics.
* The Anti-Defamation League: seek anti-sematic defamation, even where non-exists. They look for keywords and believe that almost all extremists, irrelevant on their beliefs, are actually anti-sematic and when they say “lizard” or “banker” they really mean “jew.” Although this may be the case in some situations, it is not in all. Any extremist can be named a Nazi or antisemite, with their lives intentionally destroyed, if the ADL feels that they’re speaking in antisemitic “code.”
* Bilderberg: was, at the time of writing, once a “private” meeting of the world leaders of finance, politics and business. They are now not so private. Their meetings are announced online and in the media each year. I guess they thought the best way to avoid the “secret meetings” claim was to stop making them secret. Smart! They do indeed influence some world events, yet that does not imply they control the world.
* David Icke: former British sports broadcaster, who now believes the government is controlled by implanted Lizard aliens in human disguise. Targeted by the ADL quite extensively, as they believed his “lizard” claims were an antisemitic codeword. Not much has changed in the last 20 years, except he’s less of a target by anti-Nazi organisations and suspicious government agencies.
* Thom Robb: Ku Klux Klan leader. Tried to overhaul the KKK image by taking a ‘no hate’ approach. The idea is that KKK members should not hate other races, nor deride them, but should just love the white race. They should be responsible, helpful members of society: ‘white knights’, known as respectable and decent people. His members didn’t exactly embrace this makeover. It appears he’s subsequently softened this stance somewhat. He’s still the KKK “grand wizard.”
* Ian Paisley Northern Ireland DUP leader and protestant minister. An imposing figure with many rules for interaction with him. He was clearly someone that likes to maintain control and quite cruel in his criticisms of others. They were not permitted to discuss Northern Ireland. He was anti-Catholic (as well as the usual religious hates). He died in 2014.
* Bohemian Grove A secret gentleman’s club for the world’s elite, situated in northern California. They burn effigies of stress and worries and act in juvenile ways to ‘let loose.’ Not so secret anymore, especially following publication of this book, and there’s a Wikipedia page you can learn all about it. It does indeed appear to be a gathering where some important global decisions are made within an informal holiday environment. It still exists and still attracts powerful people.
n

Jon Ronson’s books are always entertaining. This one also left me a bit sad. I think the same book could be written today—twenty years later—with a slight update on some of the extremist group names.

Ultimately, this book is about people and groups trying to find meaning in a world they don’t understand or can’t control. Since most of the groups and people described are fascists and/or racists, it’s impossible to feel much sympathy for their struggles, but when I did begin to feel something for people who clearly have problems, I would remember, “Oh, yeah, right….”

4½⭐

I was a little worried that this book, written in the late nineties and published in 2002, would no longer be relevant. I was wrong. The chapters on Ruby Ridge and Waco in particular provide valuable context on why things are the way they are today. Every chapter is infused with Ronson's inimitable journalistic perspective and dry wit. Listen to the audio book with his narration -- you won't be sorry.

Them is a fine piece of gonzo journalism. Jon Ronson spends time with various extremists from Islamic fundamentalists, the leaders of the Ku Klux Klan, white supremacist survivalists as well as David Icke and Alex Jones.

He also goes on a mission to find the Bilderberg Group and actually was the first to expose the infamous Bohemian Grove where powerful leaders and business men attended an owl burning ceremony.

The reason this book deserves 5 stars is not because it's well written (although it is) but rather because it's so relevant today.
This book was written in the late 90s/early 2000s. At the time many of the theories and beliefs in the book were ridiculous, fringe and even laughable. In the intervening 25 years social media has made these beliefs mainstream with a large part of society believing them.

Really well read by the author in his nice nebbish manner.

I think this book being called ‘Them: adventures with extremists’ is mis marketed as it is more about conspiracy than I was anticipating. I was expecting the book to be about why certain people believe so strongly (for example, the KKK and Islamic extremists) in more of a documentary style way but it’s just a bit odd. I had never heard of the Bilderberg group so at least that’s something.

I found myself forgetting the book is non-fiction as it very much reads like a fictitious story. It is also interesting (perhaps sad is a better term) that this book was published 20+ years ago and touches on Hamas and the Israel/Palestine conflict that is still ongoing to this day.

Not as good as The Psychopath test but an interesting read. Probably not something I’d necessarily recommend but I don’t regret reading it.

Not quite as good as the psychopath test but still entertaining and disturbing at the same time.

I'm really not sure of the overall purpose or premise of the book. Was it just to interact with various extremists and to write about them? If so, mission accomplished. Maybe by interacting with them and writing about them, Ronson hopes to show the ridiculousness of their views. Instead, I think he inadvertently made some a bit more sympathetic than he intended. For example, I learned more about Randy Weaver than I previously knew and am even more outraged at that whole situation.

Another shortcoming is that, apparently, extremism is a trait unique to those on the right of the political spectrum. As someone who leans to the right, I can attest to the fact that conspiracy theories and extremism is quite prevalent. However, he also could have very easily found left-leaning extremists. Environmentalists, pro-abortionists, communists, etc, could have balanced this out a bit.

I like finding a good "journalist goes out in the world to do some good" story, and Them satisfied my desire completely. While he's busy writing and recording everything he can about the extremists he's studying, Ronson also manages to do something I find relatively unique. Or rather, he manages not to do something; he doesn't judge them. At least, he doesn't do it when you're looking.

These people might be wacko, they might be sane, they might be evil, they might be good, but they are people, and they can be understood.

The one where Jon Ronson breaks into the Bohemian Grove with a young(er) Alex Jones, and tragically for history and humanity, doesn't let him accidentally fall into a ditch or impale himself on a historic redwood or anything.

But seriously, this book was prescient in numerous deeply frightening ways. Ronson is insightful and incredibly brave (in a very nervous nebbishy manner).

Everyone should read this book.

This was a really intriguing book. Jon Ronson's writing is really fun to read and this is a quick book. The chapters cover different groups/conspiracies, so it's really more like a series of essays. I think it did a good job of showing how a group of facts can be interpreted in a way that supports one's biases; one man's gun enthusiast is another man's anti-government militia leader, for example. The book frequently take the tone of a Daily Show interview. The author doesn't have to do a lot of "look how crazy this guy is!" b/c the characters happily display their extremist ideas on their own. There is a liberal slant to this book, which the author admits, but there are some examples of liberal extremist as well. The events in the book take place mostly in the late 90s. I wish there was a prologue to update us on the characters today and if they still hold their extreme views.